Tales of the Oniwaban
by eriesalia
Summary: The surviving Oniwaban recall the past. A series of vignettes that loosely follow Okina, Aoshi and the clan. (Revised again TT)
1. Okina

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**Tales of the Oniwaban **   
_**A fanfic from the Rurouni Kenshin universe**_   
_by eriesalia_ (revised 4/17/04) 

Authors' notes: In 1854, the arrival of Commodore Perry changed the landscape of the politcal scene in Japan. The then Okashira of the Oniwabanshu based in Edo, concerned for the political fallout, sent a group of Oniwaban to Kyoto to set up an additional stronghold. Okina was this man charged with tending to the Kyoto Oniwaban. 

* * *

_ "I see." The monk raised his eyebrow. "'Take the bride and run' or so Okina used to say. Is this one of Okina's plans?" _ Chapter 46. "Another Chance" 

~~

**"Grandpa, tell me a story."**

**That was how it always began. Blue eyes, Green eyes, Brown eyes – always different ones, but always the same line and the same plaintive look. Followed again by, "Grandpa, tell me a story."**

**"A story?" He automatically responded. "But it's late and your mother won't like it—"**

**"Just a short one," the child pouted beautifully. "About when you were young."**

**Young. Yes. He was young once. But now even he admitted that he was too old to go skirt-chasing as he used to. But that kind of tale – that would have to wait for the little one to grow older. **

**"Hmm," he paused, thinking carefully about what would interest her. "Shall I tell you the story about the Okashira's mother?"**

**"Misao-neesan?" The young girl's eyes widened. **

**He could see the hero-worship in the young child's eyes and chuckled. "Perhaps I shall tell you this story, as I told it to Misao-chan long ago." **

**He took a breath before beginning. "It was an ordinary day in Kyoto…"**

~

It was an ordinary day in Kyoto

Never mind it was monsoon season and the weather was atrocious.

It was an ordinary day nonetheless for the Kyoto Oniwaban.

Nenji Kashiwazaki sighed as he took stalled under the roof of one of the open storefronts that was near the home of the Itaikana clan.

He pretended to be taking shelter from the rain and ogling the food. In reality he was waiting to catch a glimpse of Sasame.

It was nearing noon, and it was almost time for the Itaikana maid to come to this marketplace to retrieve supplies.

Makimachi Takeo, son of the Okashira of the Oniwabanshuu, had sent him here. Despite the fact that Okina was the young man's elder by a number of years -- he had no desire to argue with the man who would eventually take his father's place as the head of the clan. And with the constant rain, the pigeons they used to carry messages around Kyoto were useless.

Normally, they would not bother. Sasame, although young, was highly skilled. It was unlikely that the Itaikana clan would ever know that the young woman they had taken in nearly five years ago had been feeding information to the Oniwaban all this time on the suspected sympathizers with the Choushu clan.

Nenji dutifully bought five dumplings and sat there eating them while continuing to wait.

He ate five more when after twenty minutes, she did not show.

After his twentieth, the woman running the storefront eatery shooed him off. As enterprising a businesswoman as she was, even she realized that he couldn't handle more. 

He pasted a happy, sated smile on his face before turning abruptly away to walk back towards the place he called home. He moved swiftly, aware that something had gone wrong, but trying not to betray his worry as he entered the Oniwaban compound and passed several of the older children.

"Okina," they bowed, stopping their sword practice.

"Where is Makimachi-san?"

"In his office," the tallest of them answered dutifully, ignoring the slight twitch on his companions' faces.

"With the Okashira?" The Okashira had suddenly appeared in Kyoto a few days ago. Normally the Okashira would be himself in Edo, but there were some things that needed to be discussed. Namely the fate of his son and apparent heir to the clan -- who had not dutifully returned to Edo upon his father's summons. 

Okina knew the man was highly displeased; or at least displeased enough to make the trip down to the second of the Oniwabanshuu strongholds.

"Yes, sir." The boys answered.

Okina nodded his thanks at the tallest lad – who at nearly ten – was clearly the most reliable of the young wards they had recruited. Shinomori was also one of the best – a matter which rankled some of those who had always been in the clan. Shinomori was a foundling – just like he had been – a child with no parents, relatives or material wealth to protect him from the streets. 

Just as the elder Makimachi had embraced him into the clan years ago, so had he extended the same right to Shinomori and several of the other young ones who they had discovered on the streets who were too young to join up with any of the samurai clans that were allied with the Tokugawa clan.

As he turned towards the direction of Makimachi's office he heard the boy organize the others again into practice. "Shoji, Keiki, Atasuke—"

He shook his head as he realized the one flaw that the boy possessed. And that was the overpowering sense of duty which made the child absolutely no fun. He would have to speak to the others about that. After all, all work and no play would make the child absolutely useless in certain types of spy situations.

Okina rapped on the frame of the door to the Okashira's office.

"Come."

Okina opened the door and saw the elder and younger Makimachi in the midst of a meeting. The younger one stood and bowed. 

"Since when do you stand on formality and knock?" The Okashira grinned. "You always barge in."

Okina rubbed his head, aware that his leader had seen through all his past indiscretions when it came to invading Makimachi's privacy. "Well," he hesitated. "I'm afraid this time it's a bit more serious."

"Sasame?" 

"She didn't show up."

Okina noted the younger Makimachi frown. "Father—we ought to go in and rescue her—"

"Takeo," the Okashira sharply reprimanded. "There is no need to jump to conclusions. Besides which – any drastic action will certainly put us in the open--."

"Okashira—" Okina coughed politely.

He felt those sharp eyes move in his direction. "You have a suggestion as to how to get her out of there."

"The Itaikana family is way too pleased with her—"

"Of course they would be," Takeo interjected. "She was well-trained as a cook and as a housekeeper—"

"Which means they would never let us hire her away."

"Then what do you suggest?"

Okina grinned. "It would cost us a considerable sum, but I'm sure young Takeo wouldn't mind."

  
~  
**"Misao-neesan's mother was a maid?" The young child gave him a suspicious look.**

**"No, she wasn't just a maid—" Okina smiled as patiently as he could. "She was a spy."**

**The girl yawned. She was clearly not interested in spies. "When are you going to tell me about Misao's mother?"**

**He sighed. He'd have to skip all the details about the negotiations, secret messages being carried back and forth via the younger children of the clan, the nervous Takeo, and the suspicious Okashira and the sum of money he had to lend Takeo in the end…**

**  
"Did I tell you that Misao's mother was a very pretty woman? And a very smart one too?"**

~~

"What do you mean that the dowry isn't enough?" The Okashira glared at Shinomori and Shirotome -- who as young recruits had been sent off to take a message to the Itakana household.. "A maid is a maid – any more and we start to look like fools."

With a courage that belied his age, the elder one answered. "Sasame-san is very well liked. And she seemed indifferent enough to the match, and the family is supportive of that feeling."

Okina took a glance at Takeo, who looked completely undecided whether to look offended or horrified. "Okashira," he spoke up, deflecting the man's attention away from the two boys and his son. "I underestimated the Itaikana family. Either they are truly more generous than we give them credit for or they are too intelligent to simply let this pass."

"Okina?" The more senior man gave him a puzzled look.

"Even though the Makimachis are nothing more than businesspersons of humble means, it is still beneath them to seek such a disadvantageous match unless—"

"Unless it's love—" Takeo spoke up. 

"Takeo—" The Okashira looked displeased by his son's admission, particularly in front of the other members of the clan. 

"I'll go right now—" The man did not care at all for appearances. "And prostrate myself before the Itaikana family, and beg for them to release her. And if they don't--"

The okashira looked most upset. "They'll be laughing at you all for eternity."

Okina considered Takeo's apparent desperation. He had thought Takeo simply protective of his fellow clanswoman, but as it turned out – it went far beyond that. He continued slowly. "Takeo wouldn't be completely unjustified in carting off Sasame. At this time of day—none of the men would be home – and I'm certain none of the women would mind."

The Okashira clearly did not like this suggestion. His pride made him want to refuse this idea, and yet as he looked Okina in the eye, he saw something there and relented. "Fine. If my son wishes so then so be it. But Okina, you'll have to see this through. It is not my place to chase my son around town.And we must return to Edo as soon as possible."

"Of course." Okina took Takeo by his arm and dragged him out past the staring boys and out of the compound before the Okashira could change his mind.

  
~~   
**The child sneezed. **

**Okina looked up for a moment, startled by the noise. As he looked at the sleepy expression of the child, he remembered that he had yet to get to talking about Misao's mother. **

**Mentally he skipped past Takeo's heartwrenching pleas to the women of the Itaikana clan, and then the apparent relenting by Sasame to the young man's request for her hand. Once that had been accomplished and Okina had paid considerably more in money and silks to the Itaikana clan, Takeo literally took hold of Sasame and dragged the poor woman home, leaving Okina to the mocking of the Itaikana women.**

**If he weren't so fond of Takeo and thought so highly of Sasame, he would have boxed the young Makimachi's ears for that.**

**There was no need, however, to share that with the young child. Violence was something he would have to gloss over for now. Her mother would be displeased by such discussions.**

**"So Takeo-san and Sasame-san were married upon their return to Edo in front of the entire clan."  
Noticing that the girl's face perked up slightly, he continued. "Sasame-san did not have the most beautiful kimono that day, as her poor husband had paid quite a huge dowry for her, but it didn't really matter. Even the old grumpy Okashira said that Sasame was probably the most beautiful bride that the clan had seen in generations, with her blue eyes and her funny laugh. Of course her poor husband was hyperactive with worry about the whole affair—but she managed to calm him down."**

**"Blue eyes," the child giggled. "Misao-neesan has blue eyes."**

**"Ah yes," Okina laughed with her. "Misao is the spitting image of her mother, but when it comes to her actions – she's like her father. All emotion some times— it was a good match," he sighed a bit sadly as he considered what happened to them later. **

**The child rubbed her eyes, trying to keep them from drooping shut. "I want to hear more."**

**Okina shook his head. "Not today, little one. Stories are meant to be savored, one by one. I told you that I told this story to Misao-neesan before, and that's where I left off with her."**

**"Then next time, Grandpa." Her brown eyes flickered open as he lifted her into her arms. "Another story."**

**He paused for a moment, thinking of all the things that he could tell her – that he wanted to tell her of the people she lived with, and the place she called home. And inevitably he answered, ****"Of course." **

* * *

**Author's note:** Revised. Argh. The manga has pointed out a few things to me -- first that Edo was the primary base of the Oniwabanshuu, not Kyoto. So some restructuring is in order in order to keep this someone more consistent with the manga. also, this story fits into the continuity in some ways of "Another Chance." Hence there are some things that may pop up that will be unexplained.


	2. Okashira, Okashira, Okashira

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**Tales of the Oniwaban **  
**_A fanfic from the Rurouni Kenshin universe_**   
_by eriesalia_

Two: Okashira, Okashira, Okashira 

* * *

"Okashira."

  
No matter what, he automatically tensed when he heard that name. The call for Okashira, meant trouble or something of concern.

Okina looked towards the young woman who had newly assumed that mantle and then past her towards the other person in the room whose head had also turned instinctively at that sound.

So. The habit was still engrained in him, was it?

  
But then again, it had seemed only like yesterday when Aoshi Shinomori at age 15 had been thrust into the same position -- new and unproven as a leader, and yet having the entirety of the clan waiting for his every decision.

  
It had been a dark day, following a series of other darker days.

The day the Okashira had died.

~~~ 

The news of the birth of Takeo and Sasame's daughter brought tremendous joy to an otherwise dreary monsoon season. 

However within weeks, that joy had turned to a defeating sadness as the Makimachi's luck was repaid with what appeared to be a relentless curse.

Sasame had died after childbirth. She had complications and infections which in today's time might not have occurred. But in the monsoon season, there was much sickness and very few who could tend to the worrisome fever of the woman.

Takeo Makimachi persisted longer – living long enough to see his daughter walking and talking. But then suddenly, he was dead – apparently killed in a meaningless scuffle with yakuza.

The yakuza were promptly dealt with. Okina had not been there to see any of these events for himself, as he had been left in Kyoto at the time. Instead, it had been left to Shinomori Aoshi --who had been sent along with the other young recruits up to the main Edo stronghold -- who had led that effort, and had quietly and effectively obliterated them from Edo's landscape. It was the one thing that the clan could give to their Okashira, who had lost a beloved son and daughter-in-law, and who was losing his own health as well.

With that devastating news, Okina had found himself summoned back to Edo -- back to the man who had initially commissioned him to leave it to keep an eye on the trouble quietly brewing in Kyoto. 

He remembered all too clearly the look of relief as he stepped into the courtyard and looked at the dozens upon dozens of clansmen, who were clearly upset by all that had occurred. He remembered looking at the then fourteen year old Shinomori -- who had changed much in the years since he had seen him last. And he also remembered the tears of the child Takeo and Sasame had left behind. 

"Okashira--" Okina had opened the rice papered door of the room which the Okashira was often known to rest in. He bowed. "I come as summoned."

"It eases my mind to see you here," the Okashira answered. "Just a sit eases me to know that my son's killers are dead."

"Ah." Okina answered, somewhat perturbed by the Okashira's words. 

"For I can rest more easily in the afterlife, knowing that my son's death has been avenged."

"Surely you will not die—"

"Death is not a patient mistress." The Okashira had answered in a manner not to be argued, and coughed. "And she waits for me at my doorstep now."

"The clan—"

"Nenji—" The Okashira had reached out and clasped his friend's hand. "Raise my granddaughter and lead the clan until she can one day reclaim the title that should have eventually been Takeo's."

"I will not—" Okina frowned. Agreeing to do so, he felt, would somehow bring the end of the Okashira's life even closer. His refusal—

"We can not fool the clan any longer," the Okashira laughed softly. "They know that something is eating at me – and without a clear leader in place, they will begin to falter in their own confidence and soon be nothing more than a worthless pack of men with weapons. The hierarchy must be maintained."

"I can not." Okina answered. 

"Will you refuse your Okashira?" his friend's expression had turned baleful.

"I am not suited for this task," Okina answered finally. "To lead these young ones – with my heart as is is not right. It should be left to the young ones, the ones who see the future still with some excitement. There are many amongst our men and women who are strong enough."

"But will they follow?" The Okashira sounded tired.

"Shinomori has done well by you, Okashira."

"He is not ."

"In many ways he is already a leader. He has proven himself with our clan in Edo."

"Your opinion means quite a bit. If your support is behind him."

"None will argue it."

"Then—" the Okashira gripped his hand once more. "Order Shinomori inside. We will tell him of our decision. Perhaps with youth leading the Oniwaban, our luck will change."

"Indeed, I believe it will."

  
~~~~ 

  
The Okashira, despite his age -- fought death until the very end. 

The Okashira took a little more than a year to pass away -- during which Okina retired back to Kyoto and the Oniwaban passed quickly back and forth -- keeping a watchful eye on the activities in Kyoto. 

And eventually when the Okashira passed -- with Aoshi Shinomori now clearly the leader of the clan – the Oniwaban found hope in face of death.

Okina had no qualms regarding the paths taken and decisions made.   Shinomori was strong, proud and one of the most brave and resourceful warriors the clan had ever produced.   

There had been no reason to worry or ever question his own decision.

That unfortunately came later..

  
~~~

Okina felt the fan on his face – the murmur of voices in his ear – and the cool touch of hands on his arms.

He was spared reliving the other memories – that of the troubled era that followed afterwards and the tortured path of his own protégé and the man he had hand-picked as Okashira..

"Where am I?"

"You're in your room," the woman poked him. "You fainted."

"I fainted?"

"There is an echo in here," she was examining him now. "I've sent for the herbalist. Your pallor is weak, Okina."

"You're going to make me drink that terrible ginseng-antler extract aren't you?"

"I suppose I am," she smiled sweetly. "The Okashira has ordered it."

"She's ordered me to drink it?" Okina laughed softly. 

"What's so funny about that?" 

"Nothing, Megumi-sensei."

Her eyes assessed him sharply. "If not Misao, then does it remind you of something of the past?"

"No." He liked the way her eyes flashed when she knew he was lying. 

"You don't have to tell me—" her face settled into a frown. "But you were mumbling in your sleep."

"It's nothing—" Okina pasted a smooth smile on his face. "Just remembering old days—when Aoshi wasn't much more than a young wet behind the ears lad, how he became a man--"

"Is that so?" The doctor apparently was easily hoodwinked. Either that or she had become besotten with his former Okashira that any mention of the man seemed to throw her off. 

"Oh yes," Okina muttered absently. "It was that time shortly before he became Okashira. He must have been almost fifteen when I took him to Shiimabara—"

"Shimabara—" the look of pure horror on her face meant she understood exactly what he was insinuating. Shimabara was one of the most reknowned of districts for geisha in Kyoto. Shimabara – where a young lad might be taken to make that passage into manhood. 

Her reddened face caused him to cough in amusement but drew the presence of the person who would certainly get his ears boxed for his comment.

"How is he?" the poor unwitting man entered the room.

"He has some illness in his chest. He needs to rest." Megumi stood and placed her hand on Aoshi's arm. "Therefore, we should leave him be. You on the other hand—"

Okina drew his eyes closed, full-aware from the legendary temper of the doctor that Aoshi would likely get a boxing to his ears before receiving the explanation as to why. That thought amused him immensely, especially considering that the poor young man had in fact done nothing with the numerous geishas who had been sent in to tend to the man his very first and last time in Shimabara with Okina. 

He had conveniently forgotten to reveal that the visit had been purely business. There had been much suspicion regarding the geisha -- and considering that most of them were later to be found allied with the enemy, Aoshi's refusal to do more than share tea with them was wise.

* * *

Revised this based on Volume 4 and a whole bunch of other stuff. *headache* 


	3. Seijin no Hi Coming of Age Pt 1

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**Tales of the Oniwaban **   
_**A fanfic from the Rurouni Kenshin universe**_   
_by eriesalia_

_Chapter Three: Seijin no Hi (coming of age) Part I_

This is PG-13 for many implied scenarios. 

* * *

_In Edo Japan, boys came of age at the age of 15. In 1876, the Meiji government changed that age officially to 20. Since then, the coming of age has been observed at age 20 on a special ceremony on January 15th. Superficially this title refers to that, and yet the coming of age is not meant literally to apply to just one person, but to a number of people._

* * *

It was not unusual to see them arguing. Or rather, to see her arguing with him. Aoshi Shinomori, it was said, never argued but merely voiced his disagreement -- even when in most circumstances, he turned out to be right.

But Megumi wasn't exactly the type to go along meekly with anything he stated. So she persisted in her questioning, down the hallway, down the stairs, through the courtyard and into his office. After all, in her mind, she most certainly did have a right to know. "—This isn't just about you, and your past. I'm not the jealous type you know."

A brief look of amusement crossed his face, only to be replaced by a much more serious expression. He turned away from her and instead looked at some of the books he had placed on top of his work table. "It is not something for me to divulge." 

"I don't care about the geisha –" If he had been observing her while he was rifling through his papers, he would have noted the flushed look on her face as she struggled to find a diplomatic way to talk about the mystery that at the moment concerned her. She was no naive young woman to believe that all visits with geishas were just about games and tea. "—After all, I know that it's tradition for a boy to mark his passage into manhood with--"

The sound of paper moving stopped. "—It was a mistake to go there. That is all that need be said."

"But Okina—"

He turned his slightly, enough so she could see his face. "—And I'll gladly admit that I was humiliated by the entire experience."

The idea of Aoshi Shinomori being humiliated was intriguing, and for a moment she was silenced. However, it was only a moment. Megumi was not a woman easily distracted.

"Tachiko—" She switched tactics. "Who was Tachiko? Okina kept mentioning her in his sleep."

He appeared somewhat startled. "I did not hear that."

"He also mentioned the Okashira a number of times," she continued slowly, watching his face. "And your name."

She pressed further, trying to understand the various things Okina had stated both while sleeping and while awake.. "She was someone in Shimabara, wasn't she?" 

His nod of agreement was almost too slight to be detected by anyone. But she had sharp eyes, not as sharp as his own -- but good enough. She narrowed those eyes. "And you won't say more than that?"

"If I could tell it as it is meant to be told, then I would. But it is not what you think--" 

"It was a long time ago--" she started again, her eyes evading his in that awkward moment. "As I said, it is expected--"

And yet her face revealed her disappointment, and a pang of doubt. Shinomori's past life -- that of his early days as Okashira -- were still unknown to her and to many others. Only Okina of those she knew well in the Oniwabanshuu would reveal anything of those days. Aoshi's other comrades were far too loyal and held themselves somewhat aloof from her per his orders. And yet, those details of his past were things she wanted to know -- if only because the glimpses that she had of him from that past life had allowed her to put her trust fully in him in the present.

He sighed. "--She was not someone I knew about, until much later. I had only been here for a short time -- the Okashira was ailing. After my only experience in Shimabara, I returned to Edo. Her name only came up once in the reports I received while up in Edo. And yet, she was far more important than I realized."

As she saw a flash of regret cross his face and his eyes look towards the window indicating that he was far away in thought and dwelling on something unpleasant, she knew that his reluctance to talk had little to do with him, but with someone or something else. She stepped forward and closed the gap between them -- sorry that she had doubted him even for that one small moment. "Aoshi-- I'm sorry."

"So am I--" he absently accepted the hand she offered in comfort while he thought aloud. "To me -- she was nothing more than a geisha in an average tea-house. But from what I was later told by the other Kyoto Oniwabanshuu -- to Okina—she was much more."

  
~ 

In the end, he had distracted her from further questioning with his own verbal and physical assurances that he did not find anything in Shimabara worth remembering. 

As she woke the next morning, she was disappointed to find him gone from their room. But with Okina's health on his mind, he would be busy tending to Okina's own affairs as well as his own usual tasks. And even though he no longer was Okashira, he would toil even harder -- if only to ensure that the current leader would not have her burden increased more.

But the look of regret and sadness on Aoshi's face bothered her. She understood he did not feel it to be his place to talk beyond the fact that he had been at Shimabara, but there was clearly more. But he did not prevent her from pursuing the matter further. That was the extent to which he trusted her. 

She had thought Okina to be joking when he had uttered the name of one of the most well-known geisha districts in Kyoto. But now to her it appeared that perhaps somewhere underneath that comment he had been alluding something much more. And now that it was no longer a simple issue; she debated for a few days on what to do. She was not nosy, but she desired two things: first to understand what troubled Okina when he slept; and second the reason why sometimes she would see something odd pass over his face when he looked at her.

It was a very poorly kept secret that Okina held a great affection for her. Not only because she had brought something resembling fun and laughter back into his life with their constant verbal sparring, but as he had alluded to before also because she reminded him of someone he had treasured in the past.

Was it this _'__Tachiko?'_

The connection was tenuous at best, and yet -- it was almost too difficult to not resist the desire to know if when he looked at her, it was this person he was reminded of. And finally, when she could not bear it any longer, she decided to turn to the women she had come to know most in the Oniwabanshu for the answers.

"Shimabara?!" Omasu and Okon erupted into a fit of giggles as soon as she had uttered the notorious name, ignoring the tea in front of them. 

Their youngest companion looked up from her bowl of rice and broth. "What does that place have to do with Okina?"

"Not just Okina—" Megumi added in a bit testily as Okon and Omasu snickered at the innocuous remarks of Misao, who despite her claim to womanhood was not as well-acquainted with some particular matters concerning men and their habits. "Aoshi as well."

Omasu smirked as she suddenly remembered something.. "Of course. I remember that story. Aoshi-san was about to become Okashira after all – there was no way Okina would allow that without Aoshi making his passage into manhood without-- well—" she looked worriedly at Misao. "err—"

"If you are holding back on my account, then you are being a fool." Misao glared. "I am your Okashira if you recall and everything in the past is relevant to my business now."

"Of course it is," Megumi interjected smoothly. 

Okon shot Omasu a disgusted look for saying as much as she did for now Misao would not let this pass. "Now that you've started -- you tell the story." 

"But I wasn't really old enough to understand—" Omasu looked a bit less courageous under the intense scrutiny of her tea companions. "I just heard some things from the other women – those who were working secretly as maids in the tea rooms."

Misao was still thoroughly confused. "Well, so what if he had tea in Shimabara?"

"Men who are fifteen don't just have tea," Megumi added somewhat blandly. "Especially if Okina is the sponsor. Men and geisha often--"

"Sensei—" the other two ladies warned.

"She has come of age. She needs to know," Megumi stated pragmatically. "So was it a pleasure trip?" 

Misao's eyes grew round. "Pleasure trip? Are you saying that—"

"Noooo---" Omasu was waving her hands in protest. "– you have it all wrong. Believe us, and if you don't believe us you can easily ask Kuro. "

"Kuro wasn't old enough," Megumi stated as calmly as she could, aware of the slightly panicked look on Misao's face. Of course it was understandable, given that Misao now understood exactly what she was implying. . "He would have been fourteen then. He certainly would not have been allowed to attend the geisha."

"Kuro was dragged along," Omasu corrected her. "Although he was forced to sit downstairs and wait for the others."

This apparent historical discrepency immediately prompted a comment from Okon, who suddenly seemed quite certain that Kuro had not followed the other men to the teahouses.

Megumi felt her patience tested as she saw clearly through the argument. The issue of whether Kuro had been there or not was not important -- they were merely using him as a reason to not discuss Shimabara. That Misao had indicated that she wanted to know everything of the past had become obscured by their own wish for Misao to stay forever young and unaware of the world and minds of men. 

She saw Misao sigh.

Finally, she could bear the arguing no more. "The geisha Tachiko. Was she there that day?"

Omasu and Misao turned their heads in her direction somewhat confused.

Okon stared at Megumi, not aware that her fists were clenched her lap. 

"Okon?" Misao suddenly noticed the tension between the two eldest women in the room.

"Who told you about her?!" Okon's voice trembled slightly -- whether due to outrage or anger, one could not tell. "Was it one of the men?" 

They were confounded by the sudden change in Okon's normally placid temperament. But Megumi saw that it was not her that Okon's anger was directed at -- but at someone or something else. "Okina has been having fitful dreams . Her name came up several times." 

"I see," Okon looked away for a moment. "So that woman hasn't left his mind after all these years, has she?"

"Who was she?" Misao voiced the question that the other two women did not dare ask, but now wanted even more to know the answer to. 

"Tachiko -- the laughing geisha." Okon looked down at her cup. "The woman that Okina loved. The woman who, in the end, betrayed him."

* * *

To quote Aoshi Shinomori: "Let's stop here." This particular subtale started it seems, almost accidentally with a misunderstanding. It hopefully will not contradict what Okina had alluded to in "Another Chance" and something of which Okon and Aoshi had seemed to know about. Moreover, I hope that you guys are still with me on this as I spend some time talking about Okina and his own tale of doomed romance. 

I had no intent of doing this this early... but Kenni was bored :-p, and so I'm going to jeopardize the smaller happier tales I wanted to tell by bringing this up now. Sorry for the SAT vocab here. Non-native speakers feel free to ask "What did you mean?" in your review or emails.

Geishas are not courtesans. Let me state that... but geishas aren't exactly entertainers either, particularly before the Meiji era. This ambiguity is what makes geisha so interesting to me, and controversial in their own right.

And now that I've gone and fixed historical context or perhaps confused you all. Let's continue.


End file.
